CPA has seat at the table on mental health alliance

by Jadranka Bacic

Physicians of all stripes are getting set to work together on mental health issues in a combined effort to build on the momentum established by the Mental Health Commission of Canada (MHCC).

The first meeting of the Physician Table on Mental Health was held in Ottawa on February 6. A select group of key informants, including representatives from the Canadian Psychiatric Association (CPA), the Canadian Medical Association (CMA), the College of Family Physicians of Canada (CFPC) and the Canadian Pediatric Society (CPS), gathered to identify common interests in moving forward on mental health issues and working with Michael Kirby’s mental health commission.

The groundwork has already been laid for a successful partnership between these medical groups. They have worked together in the past on joint briefs to the Senate Standing Committee on Social Affairs, Science and Technology, advocating for better care and services through the Wait Time Alliance, and the launch and expansion of the Canadian Alliance on Mental Illness and Mental Health.

Opportunities for influence within the MHCC and other federal government departments were discussed. Representatives from the CPA highlighted that physicians can play an important role in shaping the Commission’s agenda when it comes to its key priority areas, particularly on the issue of stigma within the health profession and the development of a national strategy on mental health.

The group also talked about the challenges in the policy landscape as well as those that exist at the consumer advocacy level. While the $536 million in funding for the core business of the MHCC is in place, the CPA noted that the implementation money for what comes out of the national strategy on mental health isn’t.

Other challenges that the physician group outlined are the need to remain focused, the existence of anti-medical sentiments, and the potential for fragmentation due to the many specialty interests.

Planning is already underway to collaborate on five project areas, including stigma, physician practices, remuneration barriers, physician mental health, and the difference between the medical model and the continuum model. The Physician Table on Mental Health will meet regularly over the coming year to discuss progress being made and identify next steps.

© Copyright 2009. Canadian Psychiatry Aujourd’hui. All rights reserved.

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